Avalanche on Everest kills 13 Sherpas with three more missing and presumed dead

The most recent update from the Nepal Mountaineering Association website contains a statement released by the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation after a high official level visit to Everest Base Camp led by Hon'ble Minister on 24 April 2014.

Photographs from the funeral procession held in Kathmandu on 21 April 2014 can be found here.

23 April 2014

Ang Tshering Sherpa, president of the Nepal Mountaineering Association wrote an open letter today which was published in the association website. In the letter, he gives an update on the various efforts being undertaken in the aftermath of the Everest tragedy on a number of fronts.

I would like confirm that we have not received any confirmation
regarding the abandon of the expeditions on Everest. Whatever the news
disseminated in the media about the abandon of the expedition is false
and does not any hold any sense. Yes, Nepalese mountaineers are in deep
sorrow after the huge human loss and they are trying to cope with the
situation. They are trying to be mentally prepared for the expedition
and it will take some time to return in the normal situation.

The letter goes on to deal with issues such as demands raised by climbers and a welfare program coordinated by the Nepal Mountaineering Association, a UIAA member federation, on behalf of the Nepal government.

The official list of dead and missing Sherpas contains the following names:

Name, Address of the Dead, Missing Mountaineer in the Everest
Avalanche

S.No.

Name & Address of the Climbers

Name of Expedition

Name of Handling Trekking Agency

Result

1

Mingma Nuru Sherpa

Namche-4, Solukhumbu

NBC Everest Expedition-S2014

Shangrila Nepal Pvt. Ltd.

Death

2

Dorji Sherpa

Namche-7, Solukhumbu

NBC Everest Expedition-S2014

Shangrila Nepal Pvt. Ltd.

Death

3

Ang Tshiri Sherpa

Namche-7, Solukhumbu

AAI-Everest Expedition-2014

Shangrila Nepal Pvt. Ltd.

Death

4

Nima Sherpa

Namche-9, Solukhumbu

AAI-Everest Expedition-2014

Shangrila Nepal Pvt. Ltd.

Death

5

Tenzing Chottar Sherpa

Namche-9, Solukhumbu

AAI-Everest Expedition-2014

Shangrila Nepal Pvt. Ltd.

Missing

6

Phurba Ongyal Sherpa

Khumjung-7, Solukhumbu

AC Everest Expedition-2014

Himalayan Guides Nepal Treks & Expedition Pvt.
Ltd.

Death

7

Lakpa Tenjing Serhpa

Khumjung-2, Solukhumbu

AC Everest Expedition-2014

Himalayan Guides Nepal Treks & Expedition Pvt.
Ltd.

Death

8

Chhering Ongchu Sherpa

Khumjung-2, Solukhumbu

AC Everest Expedition-2014

Himalayan Guides Nepal Treks & Expedition Pvt.
Ltd.

Death

9

Dorjee Khatri

Lelep-9, Taplejung

Adventure Everest Expedition-2014

Himalayan Guides Nepal Treks & Expedition Pvt.
Ltd.

Death

10

Then Dorjee Sherpa

Khumjung-7, Solukhumbu

Adventure Everest Expedition-2014

Himalayan Guides Nepal Treks & Expedition Pvt.
Ltd.

Death

11

Phur Temba Sherpa

Yaphu-9, Shankhuwasabha

Adventure Everest Expedition-2014

Himalayan Guides Nepal Treks & Expedition Pvt.
Ltd.

Death

12

Aankaji Sherpa

Makalu-9, Sankhuwasabha

Everest Chinese Dream Expedition-2014

Seven Summit treks Pvt. Ltd.

Death

13

Pem Tenji Sherpa

Chheskam-2, Solukhumbu

Everest Chinese Dream Expedition-2014

Seven Summit treks Pvt. Ltd.

Missing

14

Aash Bahadur Gurung

Laprak-7, Gorkha

Everest Chinese Dream Expedition-2014

Seven Summit treks Pvt. Ltd.

Missing

15

Pasang Karma Sherpa

Juving-5, Solukhumbu

Jagged Globe Everest Expedition-2014

Summit Nepal Trekking Pvt. Ltd.

Death

16

Asman Tamang

Sotang-9, Solukhumbu

Himalayan Ecstasy Lhotse Expedition-2014

Himalayan Ecstasy Treks and Expedition Pvt. Ltd.

Death

19 April 2013

Ed Douglas who is in Nepal writes in the Guardian the day after the avalanche on Everest which includes a map of where tragedy struck:

Chechhee Sherpa was cooking dinner when her husband called from Everest.
Just 23, Abiral Rai was working for the first time on the mountain,
carrying loads for his New Zealand client in preparation for an attempt
on the summit in May. He told Chechhee that he would be up at 2am on
Friday to climb from Base Camp through the notorious Icefall to Camp 2
in the Western Cwm, the last major staging post before a summit attempt.

18 April, 2013

Awful news has come out of Nepal today as we begin
to get details about the deaths of at least 13 Nepalese Sherpa guides who were
killed after an avalanche on the slopes of Mount Everest.

UIAA president Frits Vrijlandt said the UIAA family which includes the Nepal
Mountaineering Association (NMA) mourns the death of the Sherpas who work on
Everest under often dangerous and crowded circumstances to prepare routes for
commercial expeditions.

"Every day during the climbing season, the Nepalese Sherpa guides put their
lives on the line so that others can reach the top of the world’s highest
mountain,” said Vrijlandt. "The death of these brave climbers touches us deeply
and now their families have lost a father, a brother and a source of income.”

According to the BBC, "the avalanche struck around 06:45 local time (01:00
GMT) in an area known as the "popcorn field", just above Everest base
camp at 5,800m (19,000ft).”

The Sherpa guides had climbed up the slope early in the morning to fix
ropes for climbers and prepare the route for mountaineers when the avalanche
hit, officials are quoted as saying by the Associated Press news agency.

This accident comes during the peak climbing months of April and May as
hundreds of climbers converged at base camp in the hope of scaling the summit.

An official from the mountaineering division at the Nepalese tourism ministry said 13 bodies had so far
been recovered and ferried to base camp, while a further three injured
climbers were being taken to Kathmandu. As many as seven climbers are
still thought to be missing.